Black and Crimson
by TheCrypticAlchemist
Summary: Sacrifice... If you do what your parents died to protect you from, does this make their death worthless? Would you give up your past to win the chance to gain something even greater? Rated T for descriptive violence and some brief language.
1. Ch 1 The Beginning

_Disclaimer: I do not own Drakan: The Ancients' Gates (I have da game) nor do I own adorable trogs (though I changed their appearance from the game). I do own Kiara (the main character) for she is a development from my highly advanced brain. I think I own a paper clip though. Yay for ownership..._

Chapter 1

"So I smile and pray upon a star,

'Let there be a place I can return to'."

"Trogs! Someone call the watch!" I looked up sleepily at the screaming villagers and the fearsome creatures ripping random people to bloody masses with their long, sharp claws. The air was stale tonight, and it swelled with the bloodshed and screams. I sighed, and closed my eyes. I listened to the guards in the courtyard trying to fight them off. The demons' hissing and growling made a terrible sound, yet caused no alarm for me. I didn't care if they passed me or ripped me to shreds. I even heard they take some people back to the swamp with them to torture or enslave them. I had no family, and definitely no friends. I can't remember anything from my past. Not like the villagers would care either – they never really accepted me. I'm surprised they haven't kicked me out of this small town of Surdana. I opened my eyes again and gazed up at the stars. A streak of light dashed across the evening sky. I smiled, and thinking hard, made a wish.

"Let there be a place I can return to." I muttered under my breath. People here would wish for wealth, love, or luck. I had neither wealth nor luck, and I was definitely too young for love. But even so, I could never bring myself to wish for such selfish things. I would give up all the gold of the world just to have a home, with a waiting family. I took a deep breath and sat up, leaning against a woodpile. I stood up and stretched my legs and yawned. I stepped onto the paved walkway and headed for the courtyard, when something growled behind me. I froze, but forced myself to look back. A trog. I'd never seen one so close before. I actually thought it was kind of cute… But then again, that's what seperated me from the rest of Surdana. It had large, blood red eyes, with slanted, cat-like pupils. Its jaws were filled with small, razor-like teeth and two large fangs. Spikes rose from its emerald-green scales and traveled down its spine. Its powerful forearms were slightly touching the ground, even though it walked upright, on its hindlegs. Swaying back and forth was its tail, shimmering under the full moon, spotted with black and pale yellow color. It was perfectly designed for speed, stealth, and strength. It snarled again, and a golden-tipped arrow whizzed by my ear and straight into the creature's leg. It let out a deafening roar as it fell to the ground. Its leg went from a shining green to a dark crimson, and a pool of blood spread out like ink through the cracks in the walkway. It yelped another cry for help, but the rest of the trogs were preoccupied with the guards.

Without thinking, I dashed forward and knelt down by the pitiful creature. Suspending my hand over the open wound, I whispered an incantation that I didn't even recognize. The arrow shattered into thousands of pieces, and scales grew over the gash. The blood soaked into the ground and disappeared, and its bone-chilling screams stopped. It looked up at me with the same eyes, but they weren't as threatening anymore. I heard gasps and looked around. The people had temporarily forgotten the demons were there, but it didn't matter, as they too were staring.

"That witch has done and gone used her black magic to cure those _things_!"

"I always knew there was something about that girl!"

"She should be executed for high treason!"

…Executed! I'm only 16 years old! I couldn't be… could I?

A guard neared me, sword in hand. He blocked the light from the moon with his bulky silhouette, and he raised his blade high over his head, and brought it down with terrible force. I tried to get up, but my legs were bound to the spot. I closed my eyes, but something green whizzed by me. There was a loud clashing noise. Looking up, I saw the creature pushing against the blade with the spines on its head. It just… It just saved me… It pushed against the ground with its legs, and with a sudden twist of its neck, sent the shimmering blade into the guard's throat, trickling blood onto the ground. Pushing forward, the trog managed to push the blade all the way through the man's neck. With a plop, the head fell to the ground. Blood spurted out of the opening and and the guard's decapitated body thumped to the pavement. I just stared at the carcass in horror, and wiped the blood from my face with my sleeve. The other guards came rushing towards us. The trog grabbed my sleeve and pulled me up, and we both started running towards the exiting gate of the town. As it ran, it looked over its shoulder and let out a series of bellows. The other trogs replied and came dashing alongside us. As we passed the gate and came to a stone bridge, another arrow came crashing into the ground just in front of us.


	2. Ch 1 Part 2

I grabbed the side of the stone and threw my legs over the side and fell to the muddy water below, which led to the Shadowmire Swamps. As the trogs landed with a splash one after another, I ran into the dry grass to get to the lever to pull up the gate blocking off the deadly swamps. Dodging countless arrows, I ducked under the ascending steel bars and disappeared into the darkness of the Shadowmire alongside the trogs.

After trudging through the murky water in the tunnel to get to the open swamp, I leaned against a gnarled tree to catch my breath. My deep breathing slowly turned into laughter. I started to laugh so hard, I was almost crying. The trogs just stared at me.

"Ummm, what's wrong with you? What's so funny?"

"Oh, nothing, I just haven't had such fun in a long time. I actually had a good time. Hehe, to be honest, I hated those damn guards and have secretly wished for their death, but I never imagined it like this! I feel li—Wait, you can speak!"

Another trog came up beside me. "Yeah, we can talk alright," It looked up and grinned at me, "but it's getting us to shut up that's the trick!"

I smiled back at it, or him, I should say. I looked around at this strange place. The trees were so dense that barely any light could manage to seep in through the thick canopy. Torches along beaten pathways gave off thin smoke that gave the air a stuffy, misty kind of feel. The green water appeared here and there. We stood above a waterfall, dumping cool, clear water into the murky pool below. To my right, there was a rickety wooden bridge connecting the two high strips of land. The ground felt like a sponge, and mushrooms grew in random places among the dark grass. There was a rotten stench in the air, but it didn't bother me as much as it would have seemed. I found the swamps to be… beautiful, in its own way. The distant noise of crickets and who knows what else was almost calming.

I yawned. I had forgotten how tired I was before the trogs had entered the village. A few of the trogs left, or skimpered away. It was now just me and the one that I'd used magic on. A sat down at the base of the enormous tree, and she curled up beside me. The spines on her back lay almost flat against her now. Looking up into the shadowy branches, I lifted my hand and stroked her head. She made a soft purring sound, but it was deeper, like a dragon's purr rather than a kitten's.

"Who are you, anyway?" She asked, her eyes closed.

"My name's Kiara, but I don't have any family, nor a home."

"You could stay here if you like. I could be your family. I'm an orphan too. My name's Tokage."

"Me, stay here? Really? It wouldn't, you know, bother the others?"

"No, remember? You're on our side now. You are, right?"

"Yeah, of course I am…"

I looked around again at the swamp. It felt so cozy, I'd honestly love to live here, but what about all of the trogs? I mean, I can't expect to be welcome here forever… Can I? What id they're just trying to get me to believe they're nice, and then… No, they're not known for being manipulative like that. If they wanted to kill me, they had plently of chances. I just need to be a little more trusting. Tokage opened up her red eyes, lifted her head, and sniffed the air. The spines rose up on her back as she hopped up and bared her teeth into the dark exit of the swamp.


	3. Ch 1 Part 3

Several moments of silence go by. I peered into the shadows to try and see something, nut my eyes weren't nearly good enough. Then I heard a faint noise. It was a very quiet hum, then it turned into a watery noice. A silouette appeared from the tunnel. I stood still, like Tokage was. I realized that the colors of her scaled matched almost perfectly to her surroundings, the brilliant green, with dappled off-white and yellow as the sunspots on the ground. The man emerged completely, then several more appeared behind him. They bore axes and swords. The two of us didn't stand a fighting chance. Without warning, Tokage bellowed out loudly. The low sounds seemed to vibrate the entire swamp. The soldiers tightened their grip on their weapons and waited impatiently, trying to see where the replying trogs would come from. The answer was everywhere. They crawled up the side of the waterfall like cockroaches, and slithered in the tall grass unseen. Before the men realized it, they were almost surrounded by bloodthirsy reptiles wanting revenge for earlier.

The battle began once a trog had leapt at someone farther to the dry land than the others. The trog dug his talons into the man's back, and using his clawed forearms, reached around and sliced open the man's throat. He screamed for a moment as clashing of steel and spikes soon filled the atmosphere. I felt helpless, and if this was going to be my new home, I had to help defend it. I ran over to the man with a bloody mass on his neck and grabbed his sword. Realizing how heavy swords are, I tried to swing it, but could barely lift it. Mustering up my strength, I rose it above my left shoulder and swung it to the right, slashing a soldier's stomache, and spilling blood and entrails into the water. My arms were killing me, so I had to drop the sword, but it didn't matter. This fight was almost over with. Two trogs had a man cornered, the last living soldier. One jumped up and clung to his chest while she went to slash his throat, but he slung her into the rock wall behing him and started running towards me. He stumbled on a rock and fell, still coming towards me. Thinking fast, I stomped on the hilt of the sword, tilting the blade upward. The soldier's face was driven right through the blade, only its crimson tip now visable, emerging from the back of his head. The limp body just lay there. After staring at the mass of blood along the water's edge, it struck me that I actually just killed someone. I had taken life from another to keep my own. Making sure no trog was part of the bloody mass, I used a dead branch to knock it all into the flowing water, which took it down the waterfall. I sat down next to the same tree again, panting. The other trogs were catching their breath too. I rubbed my shoulder. Just swinging that sword once about pulled my arm right out. Tokage skurried over the water to where I was. She looked at me and smiled, showing blood covered fangs.

"That was awesome, Kiara! I forgot you had aposable thumbs, so that sword trick caught me by surprise!"

"Well, I'm glad _you_ liked it… 'Bout dislocated my arm… Swords are too heavy for me to dash around with. If I'' gonna be fighting, I need a nice, convienient light-weight weapon."

"Well, what about claws? They aren't too heavy, and they certainly are convienient… Just use that biologic magic on your nails."

"…Biologic magic? Didn't know it held such a title…" I looked down at my hands. I covered one with the other and said an incantation. My fingers trembled and felt like they just exploded. I gritted my teeth to keep from screaming, but when I removed my hand, I had claws instead of nails. They were silvery, and were certainly heavier than one would think. They were about an inch long, and looked sharp, and a great deal stronger than a human's regular nails. I clenched and unclenched my hand, trying to get rid of the sharp pains and that tingley feeling. Well, I guess I had to do it to the other hand too. I placed my clawed hand over the other, then repeated the same spell. Baring my teeth, I managed not to yelp. After the reddish light had faded, I moved my hand to find one with the same claws. I shook it out to get the feel of it.

"Wow, that's perfect! Use 'em on something."

"Use them?" I looked around. There was small fencing leading up to the wooden brige, probably from the humans who'd tried to inhabit the Shadowmire before they discovered trogs. I walked over to the wooden posts, drew my hand back, then through it forward, claws outstretched. My hand went right through the tough wood like a hot knife to butter. Scraps of wood flew out, and the grass was covered with small wood chips. I just stood there and blinked, looking from my claws, to the shredded post, then back again to hy claws.

"See? They almost never dull, and you can't beat convienience!"

"So, if I am going to stay here, where would the best place be?"

The others had already gone back to whatever they had been doing before. Tokage yawned and thought for a moment. "Hey, I got it! You probably won't want to sleep in the swamps, there's almost no dry place, and we have the place booby trapped in case any creature had entered undetected, so it's best not to wander around. There's a tunnel northeast of here, which lets out at the legendary Tree of Mourning. I've heard it's a beautiful clearing, with the tree in the very center. I've always wanted to visit it, but I've never had a legitimate reason. You could build a shelter there, using materials from the swamp."

Hmmm, Tree of Mourning… Sounds like something you'd hear in a story. "Well," I said, smiling at Tokage, "let's see about this tree, eh?"

She nodded her head. We turned to face the wobbly wooden bridge. I walked over to the first plank, and kneeled down. Placing my hands on the edge, I used alchemy to rearrange the planks to form a nice, sturdy but narrow board. I stood up, and placing one foot in front of the other, I tiptoed across the board and hopped onto the other side. I turned around to watch Tokage, who scampered along with her tail straight. We traveled down the steaduly sloped land until we reached the lower part of the swamp, where you had to practically swim where you wanted to go. The water came up above my waist, and right at Tokage's shoulders. There were spots of land, and we would crawl onto it and rest our legs. There were frequent caves along the watery path we were taking, and Tokage said that they are used as torture rooms for humans. As we neared another cave, we heard a faint voice. It was a human's voice.


	4. Ch 1 Part 4

He called out for help. We trudged over to the entrance of the dimly lit cave. Markings and hieroglyphics covered the stone walls. They appeared to be instructions of some kind. Another room on the cave's left was where the voice was coming from. But there was also another voice now, it was snake-like, a trog's. We plodded up to the threshold, soaked with muddy water. An elder trog was interrogating someone, who seemed to be a soldier, but was so covered with blood it could have been anything.

"You're… A barbarian… A savage, and nothing more… And to think I'd tell you such classified… Information…"

It must've been a soldier, if he knew anything that was considered "classified". The trog must've heard my footsteps, because he whirled around.

"Oh, thank heaven… Another person… Please, help me!"

"And why exactly would I do that? Hey, wait a minute… Aren't you… Yes, you are the Royal Seer of Lady Myschala, am I right?"

"Yes, so you have heard of me! Thank goodness you have come to rescue me! These beasts are trying to force out secret information. Please rid this world of their being!"

I looked down at the man lying on the ground, looking right back up at me with a smile. The elder trog went to swipe at me, but Tokage told him that I was part of the tribe. The man looked at me.

"Does that beast speak of the truth, M'Lady?"

I knelt down and smiled at him. "You bet. Know, you could start by telling us that information."

"You traitor! Do you not care for your own kind, or do you have a heart only for these… things!"

"You know, you're really starting to get on my nerves." I grabbed him by the throat and lifted him off the ground. Holding up my other hand, I made a chair from the stone using alchemy, and flung him down into it. Snapping my fingers, metal braces wrapped around his arms and legs. He was tied down to the most uncomfortable chair. He fought for a second, then looked up at me with pure fear in his eyes.

"Now, without giving us any lip about us being savage beasts, tell us what you know."

"No, I would never sink so low as to spill out secrets, so just kill me now because you will even if I did tell you."

"So, you're keeping quiet so you'll die with dignity… Well then," I turned to the elder, "do you have any snakes at hand?"

The trog looked at me, surprised by my request. But as the meaning sunk in, a fanged smile crept across his face. He walked over to a shelf and picked up a jar. He handed it to me. I twisted the lid off and a small boa sat, curled up inside. Carefully, I pulled out the snake. It hung from my hand, flicking its tongue and hissing. I'd read about this in a book once, and I felt sorry for the snake, but this man needed to spill the beans about whatever it was that he knew.

"Now, I will ask you again. Tell me what you know, and I shall make your death quick and painless, and bury you in the sun, and you shall rest in peace. Refuse, and I will kill you in one of the most horrible ways, and leave your rotting corpse before the village for everyone to see."

"No, please, you are human, have you no emotion toward your fellow man?"

I sighed, then sighed. "Well, you leave me with no choice… Tokage, hold his mouth open."

"No, wait! What… What are you going to do? Please stop!"

She grabbed his bottom jar and jerked it down, then pushed her claws against his face, prying his mouth wide open. Slowly, I pushed the snake into the man's mouth, headfirst. It crawled into his throat. He started to gag, but the snake kept going down. He fought against Tokage, but she was stronger than she looked and kept his mouth open. His lips started to turn blue, his eyes becoming blank. He stopped fighting, then stopped gagging. The snake was all the way down the man's throat; it would not be saved, sadly.


	5. Ch 1 Part 5

The elder looked at me. "Genious," he hissed, "I hope you don't mind if I steal your wonderful method."

I looked up at the trog and smiled. "Nope, not at all! Glad I could help. Sorry, I couldn't get him to say whatever you were wanting out of him."

"That's okay, I don't think he would've talked no matter how much you scare them."

"Ignorant, really. If you know you have to die, at least do something to make it worthwhile…"

I looked at the limp body, and remembered that look of fear in his eyes when I first put the snake in his mouth. I kind of… I kind of liked it. That feeling of control and power. I wanted more, more people to torture and slay. Now I knew why the trogs would come into Surdana at sundown, why they took no mercy on the people. It just felt too good to kill the selfish humans. Plus the fact that they actually _ate_ the people, but that wasn't the point.

"So, when do trogs do their raids on nearby villages? Is it on random nights, or do you guys go on a routine, or something?"

Tokage bit into the man's arm, and tore off a chunk. "It's pretty much random," she said with a mouthful of flesh and blood. She swallowed, and shook off the blood from her nose. "We pretty much go whenever we feel like it."

"Hmmm, would it be okay if I joined in next time?"

"What? You mean you wouldn't be bothered by slaying your own kind?"

"They are no better than the grull from the mountains, and they've excluded me all my life. I'll simply return the favor."

"Okay, I guess, if you're sure---" She stuck her nose in the air and sniffed. "…Humans! A lot of them!"


End file.
